AALBC.com eNewsletter - June 30th, 2003

Read our eNewsetter Archives
Subscribe to This Newsletter

Too Beautiful To Die by Glenville Lovell

"It had been a long while since I read a suspense/mystery novel�too long. I had a stroke of good fortune when the most recent mystery book I read was Too Beautiful To Die by Glenville Lovell. The book is, in a word, superb. Too Beautiful To Die is a fast-paced, action-packed detective story that dares to be based on the frailty of human emotions and the complexity of race in our society, Too Beautiful To Die is smart, sexy, soft in the right places, and outlined with the proper amount of violence to make for an irresistible tale. I loved every word of it."  �Read the rest of Thumper's Review

"Fire In A Canebrake is an excellent account of this tragic event. Wexler presents a well researched, clear, concise and complete view of the mass lynching. She shows Walton County before and after the murders including the political climate of the town, state of Georgia and the country at the time of the murders. She also presents biographical details of all the major, as well as a few minor, participants. I loved the fact that Wexler provided an objective view of the murders by either verifying or contradicting the statements of eyewitnesses and those who were later called as witnesses in the subsequent hearings." �Read the rest of Thumper's Review

"Blues From Down Deep is a prime example for enforcement of a "truth in advertising" law. Instead of the promised family drama, I was treated to bland, tedious romances that began with solidly constructed sexual tension that withered from disuse, and a silly main character. The title, Blues From Down Deep, is how I felt during and after reading this book." �Read the rest of Thumper's Review

"I looked forward to reading Minion. I had great hopes for a new series featuring vampires. Sadly, Minion ain't the series I had anticipated.  From the first word to the last, I was highly disappointed, frustrated and angry with Minion. Everything about it made me see red: the plot, structure, dialogue, sub-plots, everything from the first ink smear to the last period. With the exception of its sensational cover, Minion has no redeeming qualities." �Read the rest of Thumper's Review

"The Bridge, the second novel by Solomon Jones, should blow open the doors that his debut novel, Pipe Dreams did not. I am getting excited simply remembering the book as I write this review. The Bridge is STUNNING! The book took my breath away and did not give it back until the last period on the last sentence on the last page. Solomon Jones has emerged as our generation's Chester Himes. The Bridge is one of the year's best books."  �Read the rest of Thumper's Review

"Triple Take, the debut novel by Y. Blak Moore, reminds me of an old timey Hollywood western. Despite the fact that Triple Take takes place in the 21st century mean streets of Chicago, the basic story about a man returning to his hometown to destroy the people who wronged him has been the premise of many a Saturday matinee western. Although Triple Take has a couple of major flaws, the only elements separating Triple Take and those old movies are a big TV screen, a weekend afternoon, and a screen credit saying "Directed by John Ford". I was transfixed and thoroughly entertained."  �Read the rest of Thumper's Review

"I had high expectations of debut autobiography, A Letter to My Father, by John W. Griffin, mainly because of my love for autobiographies and also due to the fact that I know a little of Mr. Griffins current circumstance. A quick skim of the contents intrigued me even more when I noticed Griffin had formatted his story in the same manner as Jean Toomers' Cane. The placement of beautifully written poems preceding each chapter offered warmth, compassion and insight into the life of this mysterious man. Unfortunately, the content of the chapters did not live up to my initial promising impression and turned into 500 pages of wind." �Read the rest of Linda Watkins' Review

"I preface this review by saying that I am an avid fan of the Blues. So, when someone comes along and captures the unmistakable feeling that comes with Blues music, I am very likely to enjoy it. Kevin Young, in his book of poetry, "Jelly Roll: A Blues" taps right into and dishes up the hypnotic lyrical rhythms of performers from the Mississippi and Louisiana Deltas. "Jelly Roll" not only captures Blues rhythms, but he instills the essence of the Blues. He also reconnects the branches of Ragtime, Dixieland, Jazz, and Calypso back to their original musical family tree. These interludes almost ache with the symmetry of his Blues."  �Read the rest of Rondall Brasher's Review

"I am perplexed. Maybe someone -- anyone, can help me. I'm trying to figure out what happened between BeBe's By Golly Wow, the last Yolanda Joe book I read, and The Hatwearer's Lesson, Joe's latest novel. BeBe's By Golly Wow is a fun, feel-good novel. The Hatwearer's Lesson is basically a warming up of the leftover elements from books that became popular in the eighties: over-achieving African-American woman receives an invaluable life lesson from her old, wise, face-cracking, blunt-but-loving grandmother. Yawn. Been there. Done that. Sold it in a yard sale ten years ago. I'm disappointed in The Hatwearer's Lesson, not only because the book is tired, but also because Yolanda Joe has done better."  �Read the rest of Thumper's Review

"Relationship novels are for escapism. The content should tantalize the reader� evoke deep emotion and keep one's attention. Unfortunately, A Mighty Love, the debut novel by author Anita Doreen Diggs didn't meet any of these criteria. The outcome of investing my time, interest and emotions was pure reading disappointment."  �Read the rest of Linda Watkins' Review

"The three award-winning writers of Sister, Sister surpass readers' expectations with their ability to tell an intriguing tale and their insight into the ways of the human heart. The novellas are chock full of revelations and beautifully written passages about change, forgiveness, truth and love. Sister, Sister: Three Novellas is a wonderful celebration of the special bond of sisterhood." �Read the rest of Leah Mullen's Review

"Do�a Julia and Other Selected Poems" by Alberto O. Cappas is written with tremendous amount of pride. It is a book that comes from the heart of a man who clearly loves his native Puerto Rico and his people. His poetry however lacks the voice to raise this resounding theme to a beautiful song.  Cappas is talented but his poetry is delivered without intensity and conviction."  �Read the rest of Rondall Brasher's Review

Africa World Press & Red Sea Press

Africa World Press, Inc., was launched in 1983 with the publication of Barrel of a Pen: Resistance to Repression in Neo-Colonial Kenya by the renowned Kenyan writer Ngugi wa Thiong'o. In its short history, AWP has published over 400 titles of non-fiction, poetry and photographs. To date, Africa World Press has evolved to become the premier publisher of books on African, African-American, Caribbean and Latin-American issues.

The Red Sea Press, Inc. was initiated in 1985 and has become a premier distribution network, distributing the books of over 250 publishing companies, with a special focus on and about people of African descent in the Continent as well as the Diaspora-- in the United States, Europe, the Caribbean, and Latin America. The imprint has also become one of the world's foremost publishers of books on the Horn of Africa, also adding to its list a variety of books from other parts of the Third World. One of our authors, Jose Ramos-Horta, was the 1996 Nobel Peace Prize co-winner. In 1987, RSP published Mr. Ramos-Horta's book, Funu: The Unfinished Saga of East Timor.

Amber Communications Group, Inc.
http://writers.aalbc.com/amberbooks.htm

Amber Communications Group, Inc. was the winner of the first African American Publisher of the Year Award.  Presenter of the award, BlackBoard's founder and president Faye Childs, says that "Mr. Rose's [Tony Rose, Publisher & CEO, AMBER COMMUNICATIONS GROUP, INC.] dedication to African American publishing and his tireless efforts to promote African American authors is to be commended." 

Since its founding in 1990, Milligan Books has skyrocketed to become the fastest-growing Black female-owned publishing company in America. The company has published more than 100 Black authors. Several of their works have made various bestseller lists.

"There are many talented and dedicated Black writers," says Dr. Rosie Milligan, founder and owner of Milligan Books, "who have written well-crafted works that deserve publication."  Dr. Milligan's mission simply is to offer authors another opportunity to reach an audience with their work.

Standing In The Shadows of Motown (DVD)

Detroit, Michigan, 1959. Berry Gordy gathers the best musicians from the city's thriving jazz and blues scene for his new record company: Motown. For the next 14 years these players are the heartbeat on "My Girl," "Baby Love," "Ooo Baby Baby," "Bernadette," "I Was Made To Love Her," "I Heard It Through The Grapevine," "Dancing In The Street," and every other hit from Motown's Detroit era. By the end of their phenomenal run, the unheralded group of musicians plays on more Number One hits than the Beach Boys, the Rolling Stones, Elvis Presley, and The Beatles combined, making them the greatest hit machine in the history of popular music. They call themselves the Funk Brothers. But no one knows their names...this is their story.

Gansta by  K'wan

K�wan is without a doubt one of this generations most talented, and gritty writers.  Gangsta is the first of many novels pulled from this writers arsenal. This gripping street tale is sure to leave a lasting impression on the game for many years to come. One thing most people can agree on is, not only can you read Gangsta, but you can feel it.
�Triple Crown Publications

God's Country by Percival Everett
http://aalbc.com/authors/percivaleverett.htm#God

In his stunning new novel God's Country, Percival Everett offers a wickedly funny rewrite of the Great American western. The unlikely narrator through this tale of misadventures is one Curt Marder: gambler, drinker, cheat, and would-be womanizer. He has lost his farm, his wife, and his dog to a band of marauding hooligans. With nothing to live on but a desire to recover what is rightfully his, Marder is forced to enlist the help of the best tracker in the West: a black man named Bubba. This odd couple is soon joined by Jake, a wayward child determined to join the hunt. As Jake and Marder follow Bubba across desolate, unsettled land, they meet Indians, settlers, and soldiers. Aiming to keep a low profile, they nevertheless find themselves in all kinds of trouble, including run-ins with a scurrilous preacher, a flamboyant prostitute, and General Custer in a nightgown. A natural coward, Marder only survives these incidents because of Bubba's reluctant heroism. However, even after their final, chilling exchange, Marder fails to realize that Bubba's secrets extend beyond his ability to track footprints on the prairie. God's Country is hilarious and haunting by turns, a slam-bang parable of the way things were in 1871.

Book-Remarks.com is a top viewed web site that promotes literary works which may reflect the African-American culture. In addition to posting information regarding new releases by mainstream as well as self-published writers, we also provide readers with monthly author interviews, book previews, book reviews, postings about upcoming literary events, a list of anticipated releases for the current year and beyond, book excerpts, and press releases regarding events, awards, and other related web content.

AddALL is a free service that searches for the best deal in books anywhere on-line. It was built by book buyers for book buyers. AddALL is an independent and impartial web site, not owned by any bookstore. The search result is therefore totally objective.

You can use us to search for any book you want, comparing the prices and services among 41 on-line bookstores. This means that you can find the best offer for the book you want without needing to visit 41 booksites, one by one. AddALL provides new, used and rare book searches.

You can have the price displayed in the currency of your choice, along with the delivery charge and sales tax applicable. You can compare delivery times and choose the shipping option that works best for you.

Black Refer

BLACK REFER is quickly becoming one of the top Black Websites in the world. According to Internet Traffic Rankings which monitors website traffic, we are presently ranked in the 60,000 range out of literally millions of websites on the internet. We are enjoying this rapid growth and have no intentions of stopping. We offer free exposure to website owners who would like to have their site featured here on our pages, under the appropriate category it belongs. The feature we create for your website is in the form of a slideshow presentation. Click here >> 1 2 3 for examples of slideshows on our pages. These slideshows are great content for our site, and it offers BLACK REFER'S surfers a quick glimpse into what your site offers. All we need from you is your permission to create slideshow, and we will handle everything else.

Interested in having AALBC.com promote your book?
Please contact Earl Cox, Sales Manager, at earl@aalbc.com

To subscribe, unsubscribe or change your email address for this eNewsletter please visit http://aalbc.com/enewsletter/

AALBC.com mailing list is not made available to outside parties.  All recipients of this newsletter must subscribe to receive it directly from AALBC.com. To learn more about AALBC.com visit: http://www.aalbc.com/aboutus.htm